Cojitambo is an

Inca The Inca Empire, officially known as the Realm of the Four Parts (, ), was the largest empire in pre-Columbian America. The administrative, political, and military center of the empire was in the city of Cusco. The History of the Incas, Inca ...

and pre-Inca archaeological ruin, a popular

rock climbing Rock climbing is a climbing sports discipline that involves ascending climbing routes, routes consisting of natural rock in an outdoor environment, or on artificial resin climbing walls in a mostly indoor environment. Routes are documented in c ...

site, and a small village west of Azogues, capital of Canar province of

Ecuador Ecuador, officially the Republic of Ecuador, is a country in northwestern South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. It also includes the Galápagos Province which contain ...

. The name is said by the Ecuadorian Ministry of Tourism to derive from the

Quechua language Quechua (, ), also called (, 'people's language') in Southern Quechua, is an Indigenous languages of the Americas, indigenous language family that originated in central Peru and thereafter spread to other countries of the Andes. Derived from ...

''curi tambo'', or ''Inn of Gold'' (although no gold has been found at the site).

Location and description

The Cojitambo archaeological site is at an elevation of above sea level. Azogues is northeast. The straight-line distance northeast from the city of Cuenca is . Cojitambostageliketerras

The sheer eastern face of Cojitambo rock rises from the outskirts of the village of Cojitambo. The cliffs run for about in a north-south direction. The dome-shaped rock is Ecuador's most popular site for rock climbing with more than 100 routes identified. The climbing routes are rated from easy to 5.14 (very difficult). The Cojitambo archaeological sits on a small flattened area on top of the cliffs. The terrain is less steep in the north and west and a road leads to the summit and ruins.

Background

Archaeologists have uncovered evidence that the site of Cojitambo was occupied from 500 BCE onward. It was probably both a military and religious site of the

Cañari The Cañari (in Kichwa: Kañari) are an indigenous ethnic group traditionally inhabiting the territory of the modern provinces of Azuay and Cañar in Ecuador. They are descended from the independent pre-Columbian tribal confederation of the ...

people long before the arrival of the Incas. The Incas began their conquest of Ecuador under the emperor Pachacuti Inca Yupanqui (ruled c. 1438–1471) about 1450. Prior to the Inca invasion the Cañari probably consisted of a number of related, but politically independent,

chiefdom A chiefdom is a political organization of people representation (politics), represented or government, governed by a tribal chief, chief. Chiefdoms have been discussed, depending on their scope, as a stateless society, stateless, state (polity) ...

s. They united to resist the Incas, but succumbed about 1460 after a vigorous struggle. Cojitambo was built in part to suppress the Cañari and to further the conquest of peoples further north. After their conquest the Incas instituted a major building program to integrate the Cañari into their empire. This included construction of the Inca royal road which stretched the length of the Inca Empire and passed through Cojitambo. Cojitambo served religious and ceremonial purposes. The Incas also quarried building stones at Cojitambo. They transported blocks of

andesite Andesite () is a volcanic rock of intermediate composition. In a general sense, it is the intermediate type between silica-poor basalt and silica-rich rhyolite. It is fine-grained (aphanitic) to porphyritic in texture, and is composed predomina ...

to their northern capital of

Tomebamba Tumebamba, Tomebamba (hispanicized spellings), or Tumipampa ( Kichwa for "''Knife Field''", Tumi: ''Knife'', Pampa: ''Field'') was a former main regional city in the Inca Empire. Tumebamba was chosen by the Emperor Huayna Capac (ruled 1493–1525 ...

, modern day Cuenca.Ogburn, Dennis (Winter 2004), "Power in Stone: The Long-Distance Movement of Building Blocks in the Inca Empire," ''Ethnology'', Vol. 51, No. 1, pp. 123

References

External links

* http://www.ecostravel.com/en/ecuador/cities-destination/cojitambo-ruins-cuenca.php {{Coord, 2, 45, 36, S, 78, 53, 20, W, display=title, region:EC_type:city_source:GNS-enwiki Populated places in Cañar Province Archaeological sites in Ecuador Buildings and structures in Cañar Province Climbing areas of Ecuador